Trapped Bird
by AKioshiWarrior
Summary: Pidge is a little short tempered. She doesn’t get along with people that well, but she puts aside her discomfort to help others. Unfortunately, helping people has its drawbacks. She learns that not everyone looking for help has the best intentions, and solo missions are a no-no.
1. Counting Systems

Pidge wasn't very patient with people.

Allura had sent her to work out a diplomatic issue on a planet not too far from Krell. This irritated both her and those involved.

It wasn't even that big of a deal; citizens were having a border dispute and needed an impartial judge to settle it. The real issue began when the aliens refused Pidge's help.

Pidge thought that the species had used base ten for counting—counting in tens, hundreds, thousands, etc.—but they had instead used base twelve. She took about twenty minutes before realizing her mistake. She made a note for future meetings, that Team Voltron would check the planet's counting system and figure out the numbers before attempting to solve any problems.

The issue was complicated if you didn't know how to convert between the systems. Pidge (being well versed in numerical computations) resolved the argument which her first statement caused. This required some yelling and threatening to make the counsel of aliens quiet while she spoke. She'd rather not dwell on the situation.

Pidge returned to the castle with great contempt. Green had tried to soothe her on the flight home, but she was too tired and ornery to communicate even with her lion.

After docking Green in her hangar, Pidge removed her helmet and chucked it at the other side of the room in frustration. Startled, Green purred and a wave of concern and support flowed through the link to her paladin. Pidge ran a hand through her hair and huffed. "What a waste of time," she mumbled, "Allura owes me one."

She took off the rest of her armor and pulled on her beloved jacket and shorts. Pieces of the paladin's gear became scattered about the room. A migraine took over her mind. She walked quietly towards her room to crash. A nap would make the ache go away.

As she shuffled through the halls, Pidge heard voices. She identified them as belonging to Lance and Hunk. Her shoulders hunched and the collar of her jacket came up to cover part of her face. She wasn't mentally prepared for the onslaught of conversation that would come.

Hunk saw her first when she rounded the corner. Lance was in the middle of talking about trying to make cheese with the milk they had. He stopped talking when he noticed that Hunk had stopped paying attention and turned around to see her.

"Hey Pidge, you okay?" Hunk asked softly.

"Yeah." Pidge's eyes met the floor. "Just tired."

"Aw man, that blows. We were gonna watch a movie tonight!" Lance smiled.

"I'll pass." She took off her glasses and cleaned them with the hem of her sweatshirt. "I've memorized all of Hercules already. I could watch it in my head if I want to."

"Actually," Hunk smiled, "We picked up another movie while you were gone. Lance _really_ wanted to go to that earth store. How does Napoleon Dynamite sound?"

Pidge glanced up at Hunk as she put her glasses back on. "I swear, I had three brain cells remaining after I saw that movie the first time." Hunk's smile faded. "But hey, anything is better than listening to Lance singing along to Hercules."

Hunk beamed and Pidge's stomach turned. She didn't want to make her friends feel bad, but she really, _really_ wasn't in the mood to interact with anyone.

"Great! Well, Hunk will cook up dinner and I'm going to gather some pillows and blankets for a fort," Lance said with a grin. "Wanna help?"

Pidge grimaced. "No thanks, I have some work to do on my computer." It was a lie, but she needed to take a break from talking life forms for a while.

"Shiro or Allura will get you when the food's done," Hunk said.

"M'kay." She yawned and started off towards her room again. Her legs struggled to keep her moving.

She flopped onto her bed as soon as she made it. Within a few minutes, she was fast asleep.

Allura tapped lightly on the door to Pidge's bedroom before walking inside. She carefully maneuvered around Pidge's stuff to get to the bed. It wasn't obvious Pidge was even there at first, but with closer inspection, Allura saw a tuft of brown hair poking out under a blanket. She smiled softly and sat down on the bed, using her hand to move Pidge's bangs from covering her face. "Wake up, Pidge. Dinner's finished."

The bundled up girl stirred from her sleep and met Allura with glaring eyes. "Mm. You," she yawned, "Never send me on another diplomatic mission again."

"Why?"

"Number system complications." Pidge sat up and stretched. "They wouldn't listen after I came up with a solution. I had to use my bayard to get their attention."

"You what?!" Pidge covered her ears as Princess Allura was now shouting. "You were supposed to stop them from fighting each other, not encouraging them!"

"Relax, I didn't hit anyone," Pidge grumbled. "Though I really would've liked to. Just had to make some noise to shut them all up."

"Hmph. Well," Allura spoke, standing up. "I'll see if we can get a different Paladin to go next time. I think the Olkari need help fixing their new particle barrier...I'm sure Hunk would love to help—"

"Wait! That's not a diplomatic mission!" Pidge grabbed her glasses and put them on.

Allura laughed softly. "I see. We'll talk to Shiro about it after dinner. Now hurry up, the food will get cold."

Pidge smirked as she watched Allura stumble through her messy room to leave. She should clean it soon. That was something to do when she had time. Right now, she had to focus on redesigning Rover, updating the Castle's defense system, and eating. Her stomach growled, insisting that the last task was the most important at the moment. She agreed and got out of bed to head towards the kitchen.

A smell similar to baked beans and stew greeted Pidge as she entered the dining room where everyone was already eating. She was greeted with full mouths and a bowl of stew being thrust into her hands. The stew bearer was Lance.

"Pidge, you have to try this stuff! Hunk made it with these vegetables and this meat that's kind of like beef that he found on the last planet we stopped at! It's amazing!" Lance grinned widely.

"Anything Hunk does is amazing." Pidge forced a smile and took the bowl. "Please get out of my face."

Lance quickly sat down and allowed Pidge some breathing room. She leaned against the counter and began eating, watching her friends talk to each other. She mindlessly ate for a while, drifting off into her own world and thinking about her projects. Her spoon was scraping an empty bowl within minutes.

Pidge was about to leave the kitchen after she cleaned her bowl and spoon when Keith spoke up. "Where're you going?"

"I gotta go work on some stuff with Green for a while," Pidge said.

"Hold up, what about movie night? You're not just gonna leave after promising Hunk to watch Napoleon Dynamite with us," Lance whined.

"I didn't _promise_ —"

"Please, Pidge?" Hunk pouted. She mentally kicked herself for letting it guilt her.

"Fine," she huffed. "When are we gonna watch it?"

"As soon as everyone is done eating," Shiro piped up, "and you were the last person we were waiting on."

"To the lounge!" Lance shouted with a finger pointed in the air.

The gang followed him out to the lounge where they had everything set up. Everyone found themselves a place to sit and Coran turned on the well-loved DVD player they had bought a while ago. Pidge huddled up against Hunk's side wrapped up in a blanket and he placed an arm around her. Hunk's other arm went to hug Lance. Allura leaned against Coran when he sat down. Keith stretched one of his legs out on the sofa and kept an arm up on the back of the couch. Shiro sat next to him, leaning with both arms on the back of the couch as well. The mice made their appearance and huddled up together in Allura's lap.

"Promise not to fall asleep within the first five minutes?" Hunk softly spoke.

"I'm not good at keeping promises," Pidge yawned in response. Hunk laughed and tousled her hair before turning his attention back to the movie.

And thus, the family of seven drifted off, one by one, until the movie was over.


	2. Don’t Sleep Too Long

Hunk woke up to the smell of burning plastic.

He shot up and looked around frantically. This resulted in Pidge and Lance falling and hitting their heads against each other, Lance's foot hitting Keith, and Keith drawing his knife on instinct. "Ugh," Pidge growled, "Hunk? What's up?"

"Do you guys smell that? I think there's a fire!"

Keith sheathed his knife after realizing everything was okay. "It's probably just the food goo Coran makes. I guess he's trying to heat it up."

"It smells terrible," Lance groaned.

"Morning guys!" Shiro's chipper voice greeted the sleepy teens. "Breakfast is ready when you are."

"Food goo?" Pidge mumbled.

"Food goo," Shiro confirmed. "Come on Pidge, you have another mission today."

"Another solo mission?" Lance whistled. "You're a pretty popular Paladin!"

"Where's she going?" Hunk inquired.

"Olkarion," Shiro answered. "Now get up, we're almost there. Their sun is going to set in half a varga."

Pidge dragged herself up and took the blanket she was wrapped in with her. The other three paladins followed her and Shiro to get breakfast.

"If you need anything, we'll have the comms on," Shiro said.

"I think I'll be fine. The Galra have moved on from Olkarion. It's unlikely that they'll show up." Pidge smiled at the Black Paladin.

"The mission shouldn't take more than a few varga to complete," Coran mused. "If we don't hear from you within that time, we'll be over in a tick to help."

"Alright. I'll see you guys soon." She waved a goodbye before going down to the hanger.

Numbers in binary streamed through Green's and Pidge's connection, Green clearly excited about the mission. She climbed into the cockpit and pulled up her chair to the console. "Ready?"

A purr was the only response she got.

"Okay," Pidge grinned, "let's go."

"That should be everything," Pidge chirped to herself.

The Olkari could have completed this defense upgrade themselves, but the process was long and strenuous. It was a tad bit easier to do with a paladin helping them. Pidge missed the green planet anyways.

She turned on the comms to contact the planet. "Alright Ryner, everything is secure up here. How's it look?"

"The systems seem to be working fine with the barrier up. Thank you for all of your help, Paladin," Ryner responded. Pidge offered a modest farewell and left Olkarion to return home.

"Hey Coran, it's Pidge. We finished the upgrade early. I'm on my way back right now."

"Superb, Number Four!" Coran chirped. "The other Paladins have been asking for you for a while. I believe Lance has beaten something in that videogame of yours?"

"Oh, really?" Pidge frowned. It better not have been the final boss. Or her high score. She'll kill him if he beat her high score.

Cacophonous shouts filled the background. "I believe he wants to be the one to tell you. Don't rush!"

"Okay. I'll be there soon." She turned off the comms and relaxed, letting Green guide them home.

It hadn't been two doboshes before she had picked up a distress signal. The ship it was coming from wasn't too far from her current position. An asteroid field was the only thing separating her from the spacecraft.

Taking the route around the asteroid field would be significantly longer than running through it. She realized that she wasn't the most qualified pilot to be navigating the field, but the sooner she could respond, the better. She was probably fine if she flew through the field.

Deciding to go through, Pidge maneuvered Green towards the distressed ship. "This is Pidge, the Green Paladin of Voltron. Is there anyone there?"No one responded to her.

Green purred, urging her Paladin to leave the ship be and return to the castle.

She left Green once she got close enough to fly onto the ship. With a quick slash from her bayard, she opened an exterior control panel. The door to the airlock next to the panel hissed as it opened and she flew inside.

The ship was dark. Pidge's helmet provided light as she explored.

It appeared abandoned, no bodies in sight. She made her way to the control room to see if there was any useful information or tech she could take.

The heavy metal doors would have screeched (if there had been any atmosphere in here) as Pidge shoved them open. She held her bayard defensively, prepared for any attackers she hadn't detected.

The room was empty. Completely empty, aside from the control board, there was nothing in the room. Not even a chair for a pilot.

She approached the control board and switched it on. The ship powered up slowly. Her feet touched the floor and emergency lights turned on. Everything was fine. It's just a really, really odd control room.

Finally convincing herself that everything was alright, Pidge looked for the captain's logs.

But that's when things went very, very wrong.

Pidge screamed in agony as she was pinned to the floor within a second, unable to move. Her ribs were burning, her heart was straining to keep her blood moving. Her lungs felt frozen—or were they on fire?—as she tried to breathe. It was as if the gravity on the ship tripled, trapping her in the abandoned vessel.

Green was—shouting? was she shouting?—at her, yes, yes, she was shouting. Very, very loud numbers streaming through their bond at an alarming rate. Pidge tried to understand what her lion was saying, but the pressure she was under was forcing her to sleep.

She couldn't breathe.

She couldn't breathe _she couldn't breathe_ _shecouldn'tbreathe_ —

She had to stay awake.

Her eyes were closing.

Stay awake.

 _Stay awake._

 _Stay_ —


	3. This is Fine

"Commander Gnov, it appears that one of our traps has activated."

Gnov looked up from her command station curiously. "Where?"

A Galran officer pulled up a map of the area in question. "Near Olkarion. There's an asteroid field around it."

"I'll send in someone to find out what activated it. Officer Vox, prepare a ship to launch. Take Officer Srel with you."

"Yes, commander. Vrepit Sa." Officer Vox saluted and left the bridge.

Vox found Srel and informed him on their mission. "Sounds boring," Srel scoffed, "I bet 10,000 GAC it was a false alarm."

"I'll take that bet," Vox said. The officers made their way to a ship and left.

After about half a varga, the pair of Galrans could see the asteroid field they were headed to.

"Do you see that?" Srel squinted at a looming green figure in the distance.

Vox shrugged. "It's probably nothing," he mumbled with his face in a book.

"Looks like a lion," Srel muttered.

Vox looked up from his reading and tossed his book to the side. His chair moved up to the console where he turned on the comms to communicate with the main ship. "This is Officer Vox and Officer Srel. We have found Voltron's Green Lion at the site of the trap. Awaiting further instruction."

The two sat in silence. Static was all that answered them for minutes.

"We will proceed with caution," Officer Vox frowned, "and will search for the Green Paladin."

"What about the lion?"

"It looks like it has powered down. We shouldn't have to worry about it."

"How will we bring it back to the cruiser?"

"We'll have someone else do it for us. This ship isn't equipped with anything to move it."

The ship came to a stop next to the abandoned vessel where the Green Paladin supposedly was. Srel and Vox made their way to the control panel. Vox kept an eye out for any signs of other paladins or lions while Srel disarmed the trap.

Vox grinned when they entered the control room. "I believe you owe me 10,000 GAC."

"Pathetic," Srel snarled. "They call this a Paladin of Voltron? He's so small."

"Let's take him back to Commander Gnov. Quickly, before he wakes up." Vox moved to pick up the body of the paladin. "Get his weapon."

The Galrans exited the spacecraft and boarded their own ship, stashing the paladin in the cargo bay. Vox took Pidge's armor and bayard with him to the cockpit. Srel stayed with the unconscious paladin and kept watch.

As soon as they could contact the main battle cruiser, Vox turned on their comms. "Officer Vox and Srel reporting in," he smirked, "and do we have news for you."

Pidge woke with a start, scrambling backwards and hitting a wall. Her heart was pounding, threatening to burst out of her chest. Something was wrong.

Everything was...purple? She was on a Galran ship, but... how did she get here?

She remembered. The distress signal. The empty ship. It had been a trap.

Pidge cursed under her breath. How did she fall for such a stupid trick? She should have ignored it. Now she's stuck in the middle of who knows where, completely defenseless and really, really cold. Were they trying to freeze her to death?

She straightened up and noted her current situation. She sat in her black underarmor, hands bound by some glowing purple handcuffs, and feet bare. The room she sat in wasn't very large, maybe 6 feet by 8 feet. The ceiling reached somewhere around 12 feet high. There was a distinct lack of visible exits aside from the door in front of her. No air vents, no loose panels...

A hissing noise interrupted her train of thought. Footsteps came to a halt in front of her.

"Green Paladin," the Galran lieutenant spoke. "We're glad to have you with us. Unfortunately, we can't keep you much longer. You'll be moving ships in a few minutes."

Pidge scowled at the man looming above her. "Great, it's kinda lonely in here. I'd love to have some company."

The Galra sneered down at her. "Get up."

She paused, contemplating defiance. She could just run through this guy's legs and leave. Guards and sentries were likely surrounding this room. It was too risky to escape at the moment. She had to wait until she had an actual plan.

" _Now_ , boy," the Galra spat.

Pidge stood up awkwardly, her body aching. She collapsed when she started to walk as pain shot through her left leg. Tears pricked her eyes, but she had to get back up. Two guards waited outside the cell door to escort her. The Lieutenant shoved Pidge out the door, nearly causing her to fall. She froze when she felt the end of a blaster against her back.

"Move."

She straightened up and walked down the hall, struggling to keep herself from falling every time she took a step. The burning sensation in her ankle grew stronger as she limped. They passed a few sentries and technicians on their way towards what Pidge assumed was the docking bay.

She was correct. They forced her into the back of a Galra pod and was en route to another cruiser. Hopefully it wasn't the ship Zarkon inhabited. That would go terribly. Escaping would be next to impossible.

If they put her on Zarkon's ship, there was a pretty good chance that she would face Haggar. And if not her, she was almost certain that there would be druids to deal with. Would they make her go in front of Zarkon? She doubted it, but it wasn't out of the question. Would he kill her? Have her tortured? These people enslaved other races. They forced their prisoners to fight each other in a gladiator arena! What would they do to her?

Nothing, she decided. Nothing, because they would not have time to. She would escape before then. They can't keep her trapped for long. She would find a way out, she's Katie freaking Holt, the girl who snuck into the most secure military organization twice! She can handle a little Galra imprisonment.

Everything would be fine.


	4. Nope

Everything was not fine.

The pod they sat in docked at the receiving ship. A group of officers forced her out of the pod and towards an exit. She examined the size of the ship. The docking bay housed thousands of pods (unlike the other battlecruisers she had been on) and there an appropriately sized crew moved around the ship. Which meant she sat at the middle of the Galra Empire.

The Galran officers escorting her led her through the halls towards the center of the massive ship. Pidge tried to create a mental map of the ship for an escape plan, but the pain in her ankle made it nearly impossible to think straight. She needed to know how to avoid the guy who has dedicated his life to destroying her team for a giant mechanical cat.

They arrived in front of a pair of massive doors, an appropriate size proportional to how big of a jerk Zarkon has been. Guardsmen saluted the officers and opened the doors, revealing a long walkway to the throne in which Zarkon sat.

Pidge's stomach dropped. She hadn't gotten a good look of this guy before, but he sounded bad for someone who orchestrates massacres against anyone who resists him. And Team Voltron? They weren't on his good side.

He would not kill her. He would use her to lure out the rest of the team, the same way he used Allura when they kidnaped her. Except they didn't kidnap Pidge, she walked into one of their _stupid_ traps and got captured because she followed some _stupid_ distress signal—

Breathe. She was trying to help someone. Helping people is good. She did something good. Shiro or Lance or Hunk or anyone else on the team would have gone after the signal. The only person in the wrong was this guy sitting in front of her.

She lifted her chin, striding towards the dictator. Her attempt to appear composed was useless, however. She could see Zarkon's lips twitch in humor as she walked along the long runway.

His presence was intimidating. While he sat in his throne, Zarkon was twice the size of Pidge. She kept her eyes up, determined to show no fear.

"The Green Paladin," Zarkon said. "How delightful it is to have you with us."

"My pleasure," Pidge sneered.

Zarkon looked her over before speaking again. "Interesting. The Green Lion chose _you_ for its pilot. You must be very similar to Trigel then. Or perhaps, it had to accept a lower life form to control it out of desperation."

Pidge maintained eye contact. She could feel her blood pounding in her ears. Why wouldn't he cut to the chase and stop wasting her time? She had a lion to get back to.

"Since you were foolish enough to get captured, it would be safe to assume the latter."

Acid ate at her from the inside. She broke away from his stare, her cheeks burning and her shoulders hunched. He wasn't completely correct; she knew that. He was just trying to get into her head. She wouldn't let him.

"Lieutenant, assist the officers in taking the paladin to his cell," Zarkon commanded.

The officers jerked Pidge towards the doors. A taller Galran followed them out of the throne room. She must be the Lieutenant.

Pidge struggled to keep herself in line. She wanted to try and break free, to run away right then. She was small and quick enough to get to a hiding spot. The only problem was getting away from the Galrans surrounding her. She didn't have her bayard. She didn't have her armor. Even if she did manage to break away, she was outnumbered, thousands to one. Pidge wondered if this was how Matt felt.

The officers stopped outside the cell while the Lieutenant opened the door. They handed Pidge over to the woman, who grabbed her by the arm and shoved her inside. She stumbled but remained standing, hunched over and looking through her bangs at the woman.

The Lieutenant stepped in and the cell door shut. Pidge could feel her heart banging itself against her ribs. Zarkon may not kill her, but this woman would. The Galran deactivated her manacles and tossed a wad of clothes at her. Pidge flinched away, and the clothes fell to the floor.

"Strip," the woman commanded.

Pidge felt sick. She couldn't move, wouldn't move. This was wrong. This was so, so wrong. She couldn't. She couldn't.

The Lieutenant seemed unamused. "Do not force me to do it for you."

That spurred Pidge out of immobility. She picked up the clothes and turned away from the woman, shaking as she changed into the standard prisoner wear. It was baggy enough not to show her curves, but her chest was more pronounced than it was with the under armor. She hoped she looked masculine enough to keep the crew thinking she was a boy. There was no saying what could happen to her if she was discovered.

Of course, the Lieutenant watching her wasn't stupid. She had seen her waist and hips. She could tell—she _would_ tell someone about it. That the green paladin was a little girl. And then what would they do to her? Pidge knew nothing about Galrans or their gender roles, or even if they had gender roles, but she knew a lot about pirates from reading. Pirates were bad. They did bad things to girls they captured. Pidge tried not to think about it.

She found Matt's glasses tucked in a pocket of the under armor and hid them away in her sports bra. It was her only reminder of home now. She couldn't lose it.

She gathered up her warm, familiar under armor to hand over to the Lieutenant. Something in the Galran's eyes was out of place. Pidge couldn't tell what.

She took the bundle from Pidge and left the room without a word. Pidge was trapped with her own thoughts.


	5. Invasion

**A/N: Hey folks, this chapter has some potential triggers in it as it deals with invasive medical procedures (vivisection) and has some gore. I'll put a little "TW" where the scene starts and ends, so you can skip right through that and to the end. Thanks for reading!**

Pidge never had the emotional aptitude that Lance or Hunk displayed. She recognized when people were upset, but didn't understand how to help. The only person she could comfort was her brother. They spent so much time together that Pidge knew exactly how to cheer up Matt. Helping someone other than her brother, even helping herself, proved to be much more difficult.

For example, she was sure that Team Voltron would come and rescue her. Despite knowing this, she struggled with keeping a positive attitude about the situation. She reasoned with herself and decided that she didn't have to be so optimistic. She didn't need to be Lance.

Pidge had been stuck in a Galran prison cell for a while. She saw no one since she met Zarkon. She estimated that they incarcerated her for roughly 36 vargas, considering how dry and hot her mouth felt. She was dizzy and exhausted, but refused to let her body sleep any more. If the paladins were looking for her, she needed to be awake. That, and she feared what the Galra might do to her while she slept.

She took inventory of her injuries when they left her alone. A swollen bump made itself known on the back of her head. Bruises formed on her arms and legs. It hurt to put any pressure on her left foot. The searing pain that shot through her leg had her thinking she broke her ankle. After some very painful examination, she concluded that she sprained it. Sprains are easier to deal with than fractures.

After analyzing herself, Pidge tried reaching out to Green, but failed to contact her lion. After several attempts, she changed her focus towards getting herself out of here. She needed Green to get back to the Castle.

This was a mistake. She shouldn't have gone through the debris field. Now she didn't know where they trapped her, where _Green_ was, and now the entire universe is in jeopardy and _itwasallherfault_ —

Breathe. Remain focused on the task at hand. What's done is done.

Pidge fiddled with her brother's glasses when the door opened. A flood of bright purple light attacked her eyes, outlining a hooded figure. She tucked Matt's glasses away before the figure caught a glimpse of them. She would have stood up, but the last few times she attempted that, she collapsed. Sitting was fine for now.

Her eyes adjusted and two figures with masks appeared. They must be druids. The Lieutenant stood with them.

Whatever Pidge saw earlier had dissapeared from the Galran's eyes. Before she could move, her muscles slacked and she fell on her side. She was completely immobile and _panicking_. Two officers walked into the room and lifted her by the arms. They carried her out and down the hallway with the Lieutenant leading and the druids following. Her head lolled as they walked her. She was a breathing ragdoll.

They stopped in front of a door with no access panel. One druid gestured towards it and it opened, revealing what looked like an operating room. Pidge tried to resist, but her body did not obey her. They pulled her onto the table and restrained her. The spell released, and she thrashed against it.

"Let me go!" she roared. She clutched her hands into fists and hit the table, trying to tear herself from it.

The Lieutenant and officers left the room. She was alone with two druids.

 **TW**

Pidge fought against the restraints. Panic rose in her throat, constricting as she called for help. A druid slammed her shoulder against the table and held it in place while they attached something like an IV. She bucked and writhed against the druid in blind terror.

"Help me hold it down."

Foreign, cursed hands grabbed Pidge and pinned her. They refused to relinquish their position as he screamed and struggled. She had to get herself out get _out get outget—_

Pidge jerked her head up and hit one of the druid's mask off.

They hid their face and retrieved their fallen mask. Her surprising success distracted her enough that she didn't react to the hands descending towards her head.

They grabbed her by her hair and throat. Her brain felt like it was being electrocuted, nerves firing all at once. It ended after a few seconds and her head dropped against the table. "Do not try anything like that again, _human._ "

Pidge breathed heavily. Despite pausing her attempts at fighting, the hands continued to restrain her.

Another hooded figure entered the room, with long, white hair. She had a chilling presence. Pidge sensed how much power this woman held. How corrupted she had become.

Pidge froze as the woman strode towards her. This must be Haggar.

"What do you want?" Pidge hissed. Her heart pounded in her chest, daring to leap out at any moment.

Haggar approached the table, resting her slender fingers on top of Pidge's wrist. Her blood ran cold. Like, actually _cold._ Haggar immobilized her again, but rather than all of her muscles relaxing and becoming a puddle, she froze. As if blood was solidified.

Her body tried to shiver, but remained perfectly still. It was trying so hard to keep itself warm, but the witch's magic paralyzed it. She could hardly _breathe_.

The two other druids joined Haggar as they hovered over Pidge. Lifeless hands grabbed her prison wear. She desperately struggled against the spell to free herself.

"D-" She gasped for air as her chest gave. "Don't touch me!" Pidge screamed out, breaking away from the spell and trying to pull herself off of the table.

Haggar pursed her lips in irritation. "You are stronger than I thought, Green Paladin," she mused. "I am surprised to see that a child such as yourself is able to break through such weak magic. Perhaps we should... wait before we proceed with the experiments."

"What do you want?" Pidge demanded.

"Foolish child," Haggar hissed. "Continue with the examination."

One of the druids waved a hand over her head. A slight numbness rushed through her and she fell into a state of half-consciousness.

Her eye caught the glint of metal in the druid's hands. She braced herself, expecting the worst. Only cool air washed over her torso. She breathed a sigh of relief. They had just cut off her shirt. It was humiliating, but at least she wasn't being dissected.

Haggar nodded her head.

Pidge voided her last conclusion.

"No, no please no no no _noNO_ —"

A sliver of metal pierced the flesh just under her ribs. She could feel them dragging it, cutting through the muscle. A thousand shards of hot glass buried themselves in the new hole in her body as they opened the cut. They—yeah, this definitely moved onto dissection.

 _"Vivisection,"_ she corrected herself. _"I'm not dead yet."_

"Where is it?" A hazy voice hissed around her.

"The reproductive organs are lower."

Pidge's eyes shot open and began the struggle anew. They must've given her anesthetic... ? Or they were just using more magic. She couldn't move as well and the pain died down a bit. They cut a curved line below her navel.

She felt something.

Pidge opened her eyes— was she falling asleep? She was just wide awake— and saw the druids hovering over her abdomen. Abdomen? No, that was her pelvis. She thought. They were poking at something. What...?

She noticed one of the druids turn around with a square of pink and red flesh on a glass tray.

Ah.

After what must have been hours of watching tissue sample after tissue sample being taken from various organs, the druids began to suture the wounds. Pidge could barely hang onto consciousness. Beads of sweat had gathered onto her forehead, threatening to trickle into her eyes.

"The heart."

" _Please_ ," Pidge rasped.

The druids crowded around her torso. She saw the scalpel approaching her.

"Wait," she gasped as it sliced her skin. "waitwaitWAIT, no, stop, _STOP!_ "

They didn't listen to her. They refused to hear her screams, her protests, her pleads for mercy. This was wrong, everything was _wrong itwasallwrong_ they weren't _listening to her_ they just kept _cutting_ and _there was something attached to it now, they definitely put something on her heart—_

The final incisions were sutured with the druid's magic. They lifted spell that keeping the pain from overwhelming her during the vivisection. White molten magma tore through her body. She screamed, she was convulsing she was suffocating she was _dying she was going to die right here—_

 **TW**

Anger and determination allowed her to see her enemy through the struggle. The only one left with her was Haggar. "What," Pidge panted, "what did you do to me?"

"Some research on human anatomy." Haggar wiped overflowing tears off of Pidge's face. "I haven't had the opportunity to observe the _female_ human form."

Pidge desperately tried to scramble back from Haggar's hand and hit her head against the table. "Get away from me," she sobbed. Her stomach churned when she saw Haggar's smirk.

The witch bent over Pidge and drew her lips to the girl's ear.

"I will never leave you, my Paladin. Not for long."

She leaned back and brushed Pidge's bangs out of her face, caressing her cheek. Her hand dropped to her side and the door opened.

The officers and Lieutenant entered the room. They removed the restraints and forced Pidge to sit up, shackling her wrists behind her. Lieutenant commanded her to move, so she did. Her ankle was screaming at her with every step she took.

The walk to her cell was too painful for her to focus on anything. She was released from the cuffs and staggered to a corner. Pidge promptly threw up and cried.


	6. Discovery

Haggar entered the throne room after they had secured the Green Paladin. She walked up to Zarkon, announcing the success of her experiment.

Zarkon peered through hooded eyes. "What is his current condition?"

"She's stronger than we believed."

This got his attention. They hadn't come across a _female_ human before. "A girl?" He inquired.

Haggar nodded. "Lieutenant Dhez informed me after they had her situated. I took the opportunity to conduct more research on the anatomy of humans."

He grunted in approval. "And her quintessence?"

"Although the humans are physically similar to the Altaeans, they do not possess the same amount of quintessence."

Zarkon frowned. "How unfortunate. I suppose it would be appropriate to contact the Princess now. Perhaps use this girl as ransom for the Black Lion."

"It is too soon for that, Emperor," Haggar said. "The Paladin is still in good condition. She could easily escape if her team had any information on where she was. She is not valuable enough to be traded for your Lion. They would not humor the idea."

"And what do you suggest?" Zarkon grumbled.

A wicked grin spread across her face. "I am glad you have asked."

 **24 Hours Earlier**

Lance poked his head into the kitchen room where Hunk was fixing dinner. Hunk greeted him with a smile. He walked into the room and peered over Hunk's shoulder to see what he was making.

"Want some?" Hunk held up a ladle with what appeared to be legumes floating in a red liquid. "It's chili. Well, almost. The beans are a little tougher than the ones on Earth. I can't cook them any longer without burning them, though."

Lance shook his head. "Have you seen Pidge?"

"Not since she left for her mission," Hunk replied. He placed the ladle back in the pot and stirred. "She could be in her hangar."

"Alright," Lance frowned. "I'll see if Shiro knows where she is."

"I'm not sure he'd know. Pretty sure he and Keith have been training like, all day."

Lance groaned. " _Keith_. Who does he think he is, hanging out with Shiro all the time!"

"I dunno man. Maybe it's because we're stuck in the middle of nowhere and the only person Keith really _knows_ is Shiro."

"That doesn't mean he has to take up all of his time," Lance huffed.

Hunk put down the ladle and turned to face Lance. "Dude. If you and I were in this exact situation, but with three randos we didn't know, wouldn't you stick to spending most of your time with me?" He crossed his arms. "He's comfortable with Shiro. It's not like _you've_ been the nicest person to him."

Lance gawked at Hunk. "We're _rivals_!"

"He doesn't even remember you, man. And I say this with all the love in the universe, but I'm pretty sure you're just jealous."

"I—jealous?" Lance exclaimed. "Why would I be jealous? He's not any better than me!"

"Whatever dude. Aren't you going to look for Pidge?"

Lance scrunched up his face. "I'll check her hangar," he grumbled and stalked out of the kitchen.

Green's hangar was dark and silent. There was no sign of Pidge or her lion.

His heart began to pound. It was unreasonable to get worked up over his friend's mission. It wasn't even remotely dangerous. He tried to calm down and walked to the bridge. Coran bent over the control panel in deep thought and work. He hadn't heard Lance enter.

"Coran?"

The Altean spun around to face the young boy. "Ah, Lance! You've arrived just in time, I am about to run this simulation in the training room for a new team building exercise! Come—" Coran paused. Lance stood stiff. "What's wrong, my boy?"

"Did Pidge call us back yet?"

Coran stroked his mustache. "Yes, about half a quintant ago. Why?"

"Her lion isn't here," Lance mumbled, "and neither is she."

Coran dropped his hand and whipped around to face his control panel. He furiously typed away at the board, pausing when the display lit up with a grid of videos. Lance's eyes wandered until they landed on Green's hangar. Coran rewinded the footage.

No change.

He rewinded a little more.

Still empty.

Shiro and Keith entered the bridge and watched the screen from afar. Hunk walked in a few minutes later and told them of Lance's concern. The mice followed Allura to stand next to Lance.

Coran rewinded the footage until Green was on the screen. When Pidge left.

"No," Lance gasped.

Coran turned towards the rest of the team.

"She's gone."


	7. Wounded

Pidge spent several hours tracing the wounds on her stomach and chest. She dry heaved earlier in the same corner her breakfast sat. The room ranked with the smell of acid. She positioned herself as far away from the mess as she could.

Her thoughts tormented her. The hazy nightmare repeated itself despite her best efforts to ignore it. Sleeping without visions of the druids hovering over her was impossible.

The door opened. She didn't bother looking to see who arrived. The hiss of the door closing followed the sound of footsteps. Two people had joined her.

The hem of a cloak entered Pidge's field of vision. A foreign hand descended onto her head and stroked her hair back. She shrank further into herself, unable to evade the unwelcome visitor.

"My Paladin," Haggar hummed. "Why do you shrink?"

Pidge refused to answer.

"Come, now." Her hand migrated to Pidge's chin and tilted her head up. She was crouching next to Pidge, and something in her countenance made her almost motherly. It was disgusting. "I do not wish to harm you."

"I find that hard to believe," Pidge hissed.

"Don't tempt me, girl." Haggar moved her hand to caress the side of Pidge's face, her thumb massaging her temple. Pidge flinched away, her heart picking up speed. Haggar's other hand grabbed the other side of Pidge's head.

"Tell me, Paladin," Haggar mused, "do you really have so much faith, that they will come to save _you_?"

Haggar ran her fingers through Pidge's hair, curling them around the sandy brown locks. Pidge's brain felt...fizzy? Like carbonated soda. She found that her eyes were forced to meet Haggar's. "Yes," she growled.

"Why?"

"Because they're my friends," Pidge sputtered.

"They abandoned you."

"They wouldn't."

"And why is that?"

"Because they're my friends," she repeated.

"Is that all?"

Of course not. There was more to it than that. They needed her. She was the Green Paladin. She was an important part of their team, right? They wouldn't just leave her. But then again...she tried to leave the team before. And Shiro would have let her go. Maybe she's not as important to the team as she thought...

A coy grin spread across Haggar's face. "The Paladins would already be here if you meant anything. To them, you have no purpose."

"H-how—" Pidge tore herself away from Haggar's grasp and scuttled back into a corner. This woman—this _witch_ was trying to control her. She could sense Pidge's thoughts and drag them to her front of her conscious. "S-stay away."

A wry smile spread across Haggar's lips. "You belong to me now, Paladin. I will never leave you." She rose to her full height and strode towards Pidge.

Pidge would not let this witch invade her mind. She eyed the Galran standing by the door. He was large and burly, likely to be slower, so she could probably outrun him. If not, she could climb onto his back and knock him out. Her tiny fists wouldn't do much, but the cell was too small for the Galra to successfully counter her. She just had to get past this—this _monster_.

Pidge's legs shook as she raised herself to the balls of her feet. She launched herself at the witch. Smoke filled her vision and she hit the ground. Her lungs spasmed as they tried to find oxygen. The hum of a charging blaster shook the air. A wave of heat seared the ground next to her, missing her arm by a few inches. She pushed herself away from the spot and rolled onto her back, coughing until she tasted blood.

 _"Foolish child."_

Purple and white light consumed her. Electricity shot through her, scorching her skin. She couldn't think, she just wanted it to stop, wanted everything to _stop_ and go back to _normal_. Pain, pain, pain that refused to leave her. The lightning stopped, but her convulsions didn't. She remained on the ground. Wailing. Sobbing. Screaming.

Haggar glared down at the tiny form before her. This human required behavioral correction. She must be broken for the Galra to use her well.

The witch knelt next to her, pulling the child's head into her lap. Pidge was unaware of the contact, continuing to flinch and shake and kick. Haggar's hand hovered over Pidge's face. She made an odd gesture and put her thumbs on top of Pidge's eyes, producing a low purple glow. When she was satisfied, she stood up and left the room with the Galran commander.


	8. No Other Choice

**Author's Note: Sorry this took so long to get out. I've been in a rut recently and writing has been kind of difficult. I hope this chapter makes up for it. Luckily, I've been feeling a little more inspired after getting this chapter out, so the next few shouldn't take quite as long.**

 **The Lions will be communicating with each other for a little bit in this chapter, so all of that will be italicized.**

 **Thanks for being patient! Onto the story:**

Green was in bad shape.

She heard her paladin's screams, shared her panic and pain. But she laid powerless. Literally. All of her systems shut off after her Paladin passed out. It was horrifying, watching the Galra ship carry her out. The way they handled her, like baggage. As if she were _nothing_.

But she couldn't do anything.

She resorted to planning. How would she communicate with the rest of Voltron? Her bond with her sisters was strong, but she failed to sense their presence from this far.

Hours later, her systems boot up. She wasn't sure where to go. She needed a wormhole to get back to the castle. If she stayed here any longer, she risked being caught by the Galra. Her safest bet was returning to Olkarion.

Her soul ached. She collapsed on the forest floor, curling in on herself. She didn't bother putting up her particle barrier. The Galra wouldn't look here. And if they did, she would let them take her. It would get her closer to her Paladin.

-o-

"Is that her?"

"Looks like it," Shiro responded. "Let's see what's wrong."

Four lions arrived on Olkarion, each with their own Paladin. Green didn't move.

"I don't think she's here," Keith mumbled. He walked up to the fetal lion and put his hand on one of her paws. A mournful cry erupted from the lion.

" _Sister, where is your Paladin?"_ Black's soothing voice washed over her.

 _"She is gone,"_ Green growled. " _Your first Paladin's people took her!"_

 _"Sister, be calm,"_ Blue's voice soothed. " _We will return her."_

" _I can not feel her,"_ Green cried.

 _"Can you move?"_ Yellow queried.

She fell silent. " _No."_

Black hummed. _"We let our paladins know. We will carry you, Sister."_

-o-

The Paladins and their Lions spent a long time getting Green back into her hangar. It was difficult for her sisters to see her in so much pain, with the loss of her paladin. They had trouble comforting her.

Coran didn't take the news of their missing teammate well. His face matched the color of his hair, fuming with the idea of their smallest member being captured. When the paladins returned, they found Coran and Allura working resolutely to track Pidge.

Hunk found Lance with Green. The lanky boy sat curled up between her paws, leaning against the cold, sentient super-weapon. Hunk quietly entered the room.

Lance sat up when he heard Hunk's footsteps. Realizing that it was his friend, he relaxed. "Hey."

"Hey man." Hunk offered a sad smile. "Are you doing alright?"

Lance forced a smile back. "Yeah, I'm just," he sighed, "really worried."

Hunk leaned against Green's paw. "We'll get her back."

He wasn't sure who he said it for. Both of them, probably. They had to get her back. Hunk knew dwelling on the badness of the situation would not help. Action had to be taken, no matter how difficult it was. But Lance...

Lance needed time. He needed to think about this whole thing, clear his head first. He couldn't just dive into this mess without a satisfactory period of mourning. Lance required time when it came to loss. He doubted himself and his abilities as a friend, often blamed himself for things out of his control, and took responsibility for their consequences. It was an unhealthy way of thinking, and he had to reason his way through it to bring himself back to his senses.

Hunk was aware of this, but time was short. They needed to find Pidge before anything else happened to her. Lance would require some extra help to get through this faster.

"This isn't your fault," Hunk mumbled.

"I know. I just wish..."

That they never got tangled up in this mess in the first place. That they never left Earth. That aliens didn't exist. Then none of this ever happened.

The two boys sat in silence for a few minutes. "Allura and Coran want us to all meet up in the console room. I'm sure it'll be quick."

Lance nodded and stood up, following Hunk out of Green's hangar. He paused at the door and turned to face Green one more time.

"Blue's gonna be jealous," Hunk jested.

"She's sad," Lance mumbled.

This caught Hunk off guard. Lance wasn't so...open? with his feelings. Or Blue's feelings. Or anyone's feelings. Not when it was serious like this. Normally he would've made a joke in response, or a sarcastic comment of some sort.

Of course, this situation was far from normal.

The boys met the rest of the team in the console room. Shiro and Keith turned when they walked in, ending a conversation they were having with the two Altaeans.

"Hunk. Lance." Allura straightened up. "Coran and I have been working to track down Pidge's location. Unfortunately," she sighed, "there is no trace of where she went. Coran sent a signal out to locate her armor, but nothing has returned."

"Black told me that Green wasn't even able to feel Pidge's presence," Shiro mumbled.

"Indeed," Allura continued. "The most information we posess right now is that the Galra have her. We can assume that they brought her to Zarkon," she spared a glance at Shiro, "but they may not even associate with the Empire."

"Maybe it was the Blade?" Keith interjected.

"We contacted Kolivan and received no such news," Coran informed. "If they had her, he surely would have let us know."

 _"If they are good people,"_ Allura mumbled. "We have no way of tracking her ourselves, so we must turn to other resources."

"Other resources?" Hunk questioned.

"Bounty hunters."

" _What?_ No. No way. We are not using bounty hunters to find Pidge. Zarkon has a huge advantage over us in controlling the actions of those kind of people," Lance hissed. "There has to be another way."

"I'm with Lance," Keith added.

"Allura, why would bounty hunters help us? What do we have to give them?" Shiro questioned.

"They have incredible tracking abilities, none which any of _us_ possess," Allura stated. "And we can sell something from the castle to receive the funds for it. There are plenty of useless objects here."

"Why don't we ask the Blade to help?" Keith suggested. "They're Galra. They can blend in with the crowd better than any bounty hunter. They know their way around Galra cruisers! And they're loyal!"

"They refused," Allura spat. Coran stiffened. "A mission like this is too dangerous for them and could expose their entire organization."

"Did they say that?" Shiro inquired.

"Yes!" Allura defensively replied. "There is no other option."

Lance was in utter disbelief. "Wh—I—yes there is! We can storm the Galra empire ourselves, can't we? That's more reliable than some bounty hunter!"

"I wish we could, Lance," Shiro consoled, "but without Pidge, we don't have Voltron. We don't stand a chance against the Empire."

"Are you serious?" Hunk gaped. "There's no way we can trust some _quiznacking_ —"

"I know. I'm not too fond of the idea myself, but it doesn't seem like there is a better way." Shiro looked up at Allura. "Princess, if you believe that this is our best option, I stand by you."

Hunk and Lance struggled to calm themselves down. No, this was not an ideal option, but what else was there? The castle's technology was struggling to track Pidge, and Green was in no shape to find her herself.

With no other opposition, Allura concluded the meeting. "Then it is decided. Coran and I will take care of getting the proper funds tonight and we will look for someone tomorrow."

"Alright. Paladins, let's get some rest." Shiro motioned for everyone to leave.

Once the humans left, Allura faced an upset Coran.

"What?"

"Princess, if I may be so bold to ask," Coran cleared his throat, "why did you lie to the Paladins about the Blade of Marmora?"

Allura's face flushed red. "I still do not trust the Blade," she admitted, "and they would refuse if we asked them. They are much more concerned about their own skins than one of our paladins."

"You can not say that when we haven't even _asked_ them," Coran reprimanded. "Princess, you base your judgement of the Blade on the actions of the Galra Empire rather than the individuals."

"The Galra _murdered_ our family," Allura hissed, "threatens and controls countless other planets and people, and now captured one of the defenders of the universe!"

"The Galran _Empire_ ," Coran reminded. "You let the actions of a people controlled by a cruel ruler dictate your perspective of an entire race. The Galra were once peaceful and kind to us."

"And they turned against us," Allura growled.

" _Zarkon_ turned against us."

"And all of the Galra joined him!"

"Allura." Coran pinched his brow. "Go to your parents' room and bring out your mother's jewelry box."

Allura stiffened. "Why?"

Coran brought his hand down. "We require payment for the services of a bounty hunter. A necklace, a jewel or something will provide the funds we need."

Melenor didn't keep a lot of fancy things. She wasn't someone who liked to show off their wealth. The few pieces of jewelry she had were priceless—in sentimental and physical value.

Allura looked up at her advisor with mixed emotions. "I can't," she whispered. Coran cradled her hand, tears building up in her eyes. "I have some old jewelry. We can sell that instead."

"Are you willing to part with it all?"

Allura was obsessed with sparkly things as a child. She collected scrap metal as a child, shiny rocks, coin, metallic thread or ribbon, whatever she found. Alfor often gifted her jewelry because of this. Of course, none of it was very expensive. A single item wouldn't be enough to retrieve Pidge.

"Yes." She nodded. "I would rather lose all of my own belongings and keep my mother's, than to lose one of hers and keep my own."

"Very well," Coran concluded. "Bring whatever you can find."


	9. Deserted

**A/N: Hey guys! Just so you know, I've updated Chapter 5 so things are a little more detailed. Pidge's reactions will make more sense if you re-read that, but it can be a little graphic. Anyways, enjoy this chapter!**

 _begin_.

Pidge woke up in a drastically different environment. Moss and dirt covered the ground. Trees towered above her, blocking out what little sunlight peeked through the hazy sky.

"Hello?" Her voice echoed through the trees. There was no response.

Panic surfaced. She didn't know how she got here. Her hands sweat in response to her nerves. How was she supposed to get home now? There were no spacecrafts to hijack, no computers to hack into, nothing she could do. She was _useless_ without any technology to manipulate!

 _"Breathe,"_ a calming voice reminded her. _Mom_. _"Just take a deep breath."_

She obeyed, trying to slow her heart rate.

 _"It's alright, Katie. Remember that one exercise? The five senses?"_

"Yeah," Pidge gasped. She looked around, picking five things she saw.

A huge knot in a tree. An oddly shaped clover. Red dirt. Grey clouds. A shadow that looked like a dog.

Four things that she heard?

Something like cicadas. Thundering. Birds chirping. The wind rustling leaves.

Three things she touched.

The squishy moss underneath her feet. The rough fabric of her prison wear. The cold metal rim of Matt's glasses.

Two things she smelled.

Dirt and leaves.

One thing she could taste.

"Ew," Pidge spat. Terrible morning breath mixed with bile. She had to find water or something.

Now that she had calmed down, Pidge thought about what to do.

She remembered the Olkari, how they use nature around them. The only problem was that she had nothing to help her control the surrounding wildlife. She required the circlet with the Olkari gem to manipulate plant life.

Her throat was dry and itchy. Maybe a good start would be finding water. She set off on her search.

Something flashed by her.

Pidge whipped around to see Allura standing a few meters in front of her.

"Allura!" Pidge rejoiced. "You're here! Thank—"

"What do you think you are?"

Pidge was taken aback by the Princess's harsh tone. She took a closer look at her friend and noticed that she wasn't particularly happy.

"W-what do you mean?" She cautiously asked.

Allura's eyes narrowed. "What do you think you are to us?" She began pacing around the girl. "Something useful? Something we want?"

"Allura, what are you talking about?"

"You. You're useless. A bumbling mess. How you stay functioning is beyond me. Do you have any idea how time consuming it is to make sure you're still _alive_?" Allura stood directly behind Pidge. "And you haven't even changed to show for our efforts."

"What?" Pidge tensed, squaring her shoulders.

"You are _worthless_ ," She spat. "Don't you realize that? Or can your tiny brain not comprehend that?" Her voice morphed into Coran's and her figure changed.

The human turned to see Coran stood behind her. A hand descended on her head, ruffling her hair. "I should have figured as much. Humans don't have brains, really. They're more like enlarged nerve endings."

He grabbed her by the hair and threw her down. "Hey!" She grabbed her sore scalp. "Coran, that hurt!"

He tutted in response. "I understand that you _feel_ like that hurt, but trust me, that's just your brain trying to convince itself that you're sentient."

"Wh-I am sentient!"

"You _feel_ like you are sentient," Coran laughed. "To be fair, I shouldn't expect anything else from a primitive being. It's pitiful, watching something so anatomically complex turn out to be something so—so pointless. A failure!"

"I'm not—"

"You are," he sang. Keith's voice snuck into the conversation. "You haven't found your brother yet, right? You weren't even successful in ridding the entire team of yourself!"

In front of her eyes, Coran morphed into the lone wolf of the group.

"Why did you stay?" the boy growled. "You're just another problem. We'd all be better off if you just left. Even better, _died._ " He continued to circle her.

"Keith?" Her voice shook. She hated how it sounded.

"You're fragile. You let your own problems and emotions cloud your vision, and risk the entire universe for them." He was making his way around her again. "There would be fewer problems if you had left the first time. Now you just inconvenience us constantly. It's annoying. No one on team Voltron cares about you."

Pidge turned to see Hunk in Keith's place. "You were always a little weird," he admitted. "And your temperment is terrible. Like, _really_ bad. You snap at everyone. It's hard to be around someone like that. Oh, and you're kinda self centered? Everything you do is for your own benefit, and you're really difficult to get back on track. Like, we're supposed to be protecting the entire universe, you know? Not hyper-fixating on your probably dead family members."

Pidge felt like throwing up. Everything up to that point hurt, but that, _that_ was too personal of an attack. Panic rose in her chest and she couldn't control her breathing. She was shaking.

Hunk made his way behind her. "I didn't really like you, anyway. Just kind of figured, hey, if a giant, sentient mechanical lion accepted you, then you must be a part of this team."

"Seems spirit guardians can make mistakes, too."

Pidge whipped around to see Lance towering over her. He shoved her to the ground, landing on her face. A hot pain radiated from her nose and blood splattered the ground. She lifted herself up and wiped the blood off her face with the back of her hand.

"Did that even hurt? Probably not, huh? You've always reminded me of a robot." He picked up a rock and tossed it in his hand to get a sense of the weight. "No sleeping." The rock flew out of his hand and hit Pidge's face. "No backbone." She grit her teeth. "No emotions."

"I'm not a robot, Lance."

He laughed.

"Yeah, you are! Maybe that's why Green chose you. She thought she found a friend."

"Lance," she growled. Her boiling blood dripped down her lip and mixed with hot tears.

 _back_.

"Watch out, Pidgebot, you're leaking! But hey! Being a cold-hearted metal monster isn't that bad. You have something in common with Shiro!"

Lance disappeared and Shiro replaced him. He was different. His eyes were warm, and his smile sincere.

He offered his good hand. Pidge hesitated before accepting his help to stand. "Don't worry, Katie," he spoke. "You're nothing like me."

 _wait._

"Thanks, Shiro." She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and eyed him cautiously.

"Come on, let's find you some water."

That sounded good. She nodded and followed him through the forest.

-o-

Allura and Coran meandered through the shady marketplace, dressed in concealing cloaks. They had shifted to resemble Puigians. A peaceful race the team was working to free from the Galra.

"There he is," Coran whispered.

At the other side of a crowd stood a tall, lizard-like man in a long jacket. One of his legs and an eye was replaced with mechanical components. A bag slung over his shoulder and a pistol hung from his hip.

"Are you sure he can get her?" Allura replied.

"He's the only one willing to infiltrate the Empire," Coran informed. "He also happens to be Encatian, so he can shape-shift. Better than we can, really."

"Hm." The two neared the towering lizard. "Let me do the talking."

"As you wish."

Allura cleared her throat once they were next to him. "Do you have a minute, sir? We have a proposition."

He took a good look at them and flicked his head toward a tavern. They walked in, expecting a lively environment, but saw no one else. It was just the three of them.

The Encatian sat down at an empty table and gestured for them to follow suit. Coran complied, but Allura stood.

"What is it you're looking for?" The lizard smiled.

"A human," Allura replied.

He hummed. "Another lost pet?"

Allura furrowed her brow. "A fr—"

"Yes," Coran interrupted. He didn't miss the face Allura made at him. "She's small. Responds to 'Pidge'. Messy, short brown hair. Looks sort of like a rat's nest."

"Weird folk," the hunter mumbled. "I didn't think Puigians kept pets like humans..." He eyed Allura suspiciously and shrugged. "To each his own. What's the catch?"

"The Galra took her."

"Figures. Aren't those Voltron swine humans?" He took a swig from a flask on his hip. "I can get it. It'll cost you, though."

"We know."

The hunter raised an eyebrow. "It'll be about 750,000 GAC."

Coran pulled a bag from his cloak and placed it on the table. "We'll give you the rest when she's back."

The Encatian grabbed the bag with a claw and peered at the contents. Satisfied, he pocketed the bag and stood up. "Here's my transmission number. Contact me and I'll let you know where we meet."

"How long will it take you?" Coran inquired.

The bounty hunter rolled his eyes and mentally counted. "About a spicolian movement. Maybe a phoeb, if it's hard enough to track."

"We need her back sooner than that," Allura interjected. "Within quintants. Please."

He laughed and folded his arms. "That'll cost about five times as much."

Coran stood up to face the hunter. "If you bring her within the next five quintants, we will have the funds."

He thought for a moment and shrugged. "Sounds alright to me. But uh, make sure to contact me. If you don't, your pet may end up on the market."

"We will."

The two disguised Altaeans left the empty pub and ran back to their pod. Allura was silent until they broke the atmosphere of the planet.

"Why did you lie to him?"

Coran tensed up. "You are aware that there is a social order... a caste system, if you will." Allura nodded. "Because of the few interactions there have been with humans, they fall under a category closer to that of animals than the rest of us."

"That's absurd," Allura quipped. "How did you find this out?"

Coran's hands shook barely enough for Allura to see. "I was searching for Pidge. Looking for sightings of humans, if anyone may have seen her before she disappeared. I found information about... about _trafficking_ , that sort of thing." Coran's face filled with pain. "Few humans are mixed up in this, which makes them a r-rare commodity—" He furrowed his brow and clenched his hands with an exasperated sigh. "Is that enough of an explanation?" he asked quietly.

Allura sat in stunned silence. "Yes," she breathed. Coran had never acted like this before. He was never anxious, never nervous or afraid. At least he never let it show.

She didn't want to know what he found.

She was scared.

She would get Pidge back.


	10. Last Hope

**A/N: This chapter will make a whole lot more sense if you go back and re-read chapter 5. I promise!**

Shiro and Pidge trekked for what felt like deca-phoebs before they found water. She collapsed by the stream, cupped hands shakily lifting the cool water to her lips.

During the hike Pidge spent a lot of time thinking. Reflecting on the other paladins' criticisms. It was hard to hear everything. But Lance...

She shouldn't think about Lance. It hurt too much. They're—they _were_ friends. Not as close as her and Matt, but close enough. And Lance may tease the other members of the team, but he never meant anything he said to be mean. To actually hurt.

And that, that was definitely not a joke.

Shiro noticed Pidge's ongoing internal conflict while they sat by the stream. "Something bothering you?"

Pidge nodded.

Shiro's hand clenched her shoulder. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Her head went spinning, vision blurred into white and she was back on the table, they were holding her down and she couldn't move _couldn't—_

She jerked away from his hand, shaking, curling in on herself. Her ears rang, drowning out his voice.

"Katie? Katie, breathe. Open your eyes. Look at me. Can you do that for me?"

Panic screwed up her senses. Despite there being ground beneath her, and her knowledge of its existence, she was trapped in the room with Haggar. She felt pinpricks crawling down her back from the table, the restraints, the hands pinning her down with _no hope of escape, no way out no way nowayout_

She shook her head as an attempt to rid herself of her thoughts. Her chest spasmed. Needles dug into her arms. She needed to escape. She wasn't there. She wasn't _there_ anymore. Haggar was gone. She was _safe_. Safe. Not back in the lab. Not being cut into pieces and poked at for— _what were they going to use her for?_

"Katie. Please, Katie. Look at me, look here. It's me. It's Shiro. I'm here."

Pidge opened her eyes to see a worried face sitting in front of her. Pain and empathy filled Shiro's eyes. She took a deep breath, unable to meet his eyes. Her nails dug into her arms.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

They sat like this for a while. The invisible sun was setting, and the sky turned into a shade of pink and red.

"I just want to go home," Pidge croaked. "I just want this all to end. I don't know what's going on, Shiro. I don't know how I got here, I don't know why everyone was so..."

"Cruel?"

Pidge's stomach turned. "N-no, they weren't cruel. Just... really mean. And why haven't they said anything before? Why didn't they talk to me? I understand that they—they hate me? And that maybe, I'm not supposed to be on this team. I just," she took a shaky breath. "It hurts. A lot."

Shiro nodded. "Your father was pretty doubtful about whether to be on the Kerberos mission or not. Plenty of people thought that someone else should've taken his place. He even tried to get out of it, suggest other people to take the mission. But we needed him. He was a crucial part of the team. Like family."

"I know."

 _now._

"Katie?"

"Hm?"

"You're nothing like him."

Pidge dared to look up at Shiro. She wiped her sweaty hands on her pants. "What do you mean?"

"We don't need you. You're staying here."

"Shiro, wait," Pidge stuttered. "Why—"

Shiro's entire demeanor had changed. Kindness and warmth no longer radiated from his eyes. They were stone cold. "You will never be the kind of person your father was. You're a hopeless cause. I'm sorry, Katie."

"Wait, Shiro, Shiro _please_ ," she begged. "Please, give me another chance! I can prove myself, I promise!"

He disappeared.

Hours passed. Pidge was coming to terms with being abandoned. She felt like throwing up. Was she really this big of an inconvenience? That her team—that Voltron decided it would be better to just drop her off on some alien planet? Wasn't she good enough? She offered some valuable skills. Anything tech related. Did everything else about her warrant abandonment?

If six defenders of the universe thought so, she must.

"Katie?"

Pidge's head shot up at the sound of her brother's voice. Matt towered above her, translucent, dressed in the same prison wear she wore.

"How did you get here?" His gaze was cold and emotionless.

"I don't know," she whispered. "I was with the Galra and now I'm not... why are you—"

"Seniority rules. No questions until you answer all of mine."

Matt never acted like this unless he was seriously upset. Pidge held her knees close to her chest.

"How did you end up in space?"

Fair question. "Shiro crash landed on Earth next to the Garrison, so some friends and I went to check out the crash site—"

"What were you doing at the Garrison? Mom would never let you go after what happened to us."

Pidge cringed. "I kind of snuck in and left her."

"You _what_?" Matt fumed. "You just left her? What were you thinking?"

"I had to find out what happened to you! I had to get you and Dad back!"

"So you abandoned Mom?" A flock of birds flew out of the surrounding trees. "Great idea, Katie! She lost her husband and her son to a bunch of aliens, and her daughter disappears out of the blue! That'll make things _way_ better!"

Her heart constricted. "I was going to bring you home! The Garrison said it was an accident, but I knew you were alive! I had to bring you home!"

"You're too late."

Pidge's eyes fell to the ground. "You're dead, aren't you?"

"Yeah. For a couple of days now."

"But what about Dad?" She glanced back up. "He's still alive, right? He has to be."

Matt shook his head.

"No... that—no. That can't be right." Pidge shifted, her hands pulling out grass around her. "You're—you're lying. This is a dream. You're not real, ghosts aren't real! You're still alive! You and Dad are still alive, and I'm gonna take you two home!"

"I'm sorry Katie. You were too late."

 _we're finished here._


End file.
